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56 C O V E R S T O R Y / D A V I D W H A R T O N DS News takes a look at GSE reform—what works, what doesn't, and what changes industry experts would make to ensure sustainability and protect the American taxpayer in the decades to come. From the moment the Federal Housing Finance Agency placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship in September 2008, the topic of GSE reform has been the subject of heated policy debates everywhere from inside the Capitol rotunda to around countless industry water coolers. Although it's remained a popular hot topic in industry and government circles during the ensuing decade, questions of GSE reform—how to manage it, what needs to change, or whether it's even necessary in the first place—have been seeing renewed prominence in the months since the November elections. e status quo, suggests Tim Rood, Chairman of the Collingwood Group, is not tenable. "e GSEs are in such a tenuous position, and therefore so is the housing market, because if you have another credit event—which you're likely to have—the taxpayers are in a first-loss position." Such a complex problem, which affects so many different facets of a complex industry, unsurprisingly lends itself to a multitude of possible solutions and viewpoints. In February 2019, Sen. Mike Crapo, Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, introduced a five-point outline designed to help create a more sustainable housing finance system. His proposal included: private companies as guarantors for the timely repayment of principal and interest to investors of eligible mortgages that are securitized through a platform operated by Ginnie Mae changing the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA's) structure to run it as a bipartisan board of directors instead of a single director to charter, regulate, and supervise the guarantors utilizing Ginnie Mae to guarantee timely repayment of principal and interest on securities that receive credit enhancement from guarantors that are approved and regulated by the FHFA putting a cap on the percentage of all outstanding guaranteed eligible mortgages that a guarantor is permitted within a stipulated timeline as well as ensuring a timeline within which all